Time trends in organ donation after neurologic determination of death: a cohort study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The cause of brain injury may influence the number of organs that can be procured and transplanted with donation following neurologic determination of death. We investigated whether the distribution of causes responsible for neurologic death has changed over time and, if so, whether this has had an impact on organ quality, transplantation rates and recipient outcomes.

Methods

We performed a cohort study involving consecutive brain-dead organ donors in southern Alberta between 2003 and 2014. For each donor, we determined last available measures of organ injury and number of organs transplanted, and compared these variables for various causes of neurologic death. We compared trends to national Canadian data for 2000-2013 (2000-2011 for Quebec).

Results

There

SUBMITTER: Kramer AH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5378522 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jan-Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature